While we get to write about our adventures in the paper, it's not often you get to see a picture of us in action (Although a picture of me jumping a creek runs in tomorrow's paper.)

What's even more rare is pictures of us in the pages of the competition.

However, I was skimming a copy of the Seattle Times' July 27 travel section and an L.A. Times they ran about climbing Mount St. Helens.

I was taken by the picture of a lone climber scaling the volcano with Mount Adams seemingly floating on a sea of clouds in the background.

Then I looked a closer and realized the climber was me.

I'd post a link here, but I don't want to send you to the competition. (Call me petty.) But I'm sure you can find it if you really want to see it.

Adventure writer Craig Hill and photographer Drew Perrine trekked into the wilds of North Cascades National Park last month. In Thursday's section, Craig writes about their sojourn and we have plenty of Drew's remarkable photos. In addition, Drew will have an online photo gallery.

Waterfowl hunters should expect seasons similar to last year, based on season frameworks approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The state Fish and Wildlife Commission is expected to set the season dates and bag limits when it meets this weekend. We have a preview of that meeting as well.

We also have our monthly With Your Kids column, as well as the Hike of the Week (to Dosewallips Falls and Campground) and the Weekend Getaway (Anderson Lake State Park).

If you have nothing to do today and want to try and escape the smog, head over to Lake Wenatchee. For the first time since 2004, the lake is open for recreational sockeye salmon fishing.

The fishery, open daily, will likley close on short notice when the harvest quota is reached, said Jeff Korth, north-central region fish program manager for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, in a news release.

Harvest and fish counts at Tumwater Dam will determine the season’s length, Korth said. To date, more than 24,000 sockeye have been counted at Tumwater Dam on the Wenatchee River. The number of fish needed for spawning is 23,000 fish.

The daily limit per angler is two sockeye, at least 12 inches long. Sockeye with a colored, plastic tag near the dorsal fin, as well as all bull trout, steelhead and chinook salmon, must be released unharmed without removing them from the water, said the release.

Selective-gear rules are in effect on Lake Wenatchee, except that fishing from a boat equipped with a motor is allowed, the release said. No more than three barbless hooks are allowed, no bait nor scent may be used, and the use of knotless nets for landing fish is required. Angling is allowed from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset. Anglers must have a valid Washington freshwater or combination fishing license and a catch record card.

There is very limited public access at the lake, northwest of Wenatchee off Highway 207, the release said. There is a small, primitive boat launch on U.S. Forest Service property and a boat launch at Lake Wenatchee State Park, but parking is limited.